TROY -- A restaurant that has occupied the same brick building at the corner of Congress and Fourth streets for many decades is now looking to celebrate its first centennial.

The owners of Manory's restaurant, Jen Marchese and Louis Marchese, Jr., have quietly begun preparations for the establishment's 100 year anniversary this upcoming spring. The couple have put up a new mural behind the counter commemorating the centennial, put new paint on the walls, and new cushions on the stools but, said Lou, the restaurant will be keeping the all-important old-time feel.

"We pride ourselves on not changing too much," said Lou. "We constantly freshening the place up, but never really changing the core business."

Advertisement

When Lou, the current owner, and his father - who died in 2007 - bought the restaurant in 1990 from Anthony Manory, the last member of the Manory family to own the establishment, they maintained a similar décor, menu, and the same family-friendly atmosphere.

"Lou didn't miss a beat when he took over," said Steve Dworsky, a former city manager.

Inside the restaurant, fifties-style booths and stools that were present when the restaurant was run by the Manory's are still present, surrounded by walls decorated in photographs of the city. In such an atmosphere, patrons peruse a menu that has long boasted "the most comprehensive breakfast menu in the Capital District" with more than five dozen breakfast offerings. Those morning menu choices are, in the style of old luncheonettes, also available in the afternoon.

Under the Marchese family, Manory's has not only maintained the same moniker, but built a reputation for consistency and a connection to the community.

The restaurant is open seven days a week and rarely closes for holidays and not only was the restaurant open during the Dec. 27 snow storm, they were giving out their phone number on Facebook so anyone who needed help finding parking or getting out of their car could call. They were also open on New Year's Day and New Year's Eve.

While the eatery can count Hillary Clinton, then First Lady, actress Michelle Pfeiffer, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers among their patrons over the years, it is their everyday clientele that defines the restaurant.

"On any given day there may be a judge, or lawyers, or construction workers, or police officers. We get a full mix of Troy, every aspect, " said Lou, who added the restaurant has been a long term employer in downtown. "If you talk to anybody (in Troy), either somebody they know has worked here over the years, or somebody's child or mother was a waitress, or their cousin - it really is part of the community."

That connection to the community has brought Manory's a degree of local notoriety.

"I think you can ask anybody in Troy and they would know where Manory's is," said Dworsky. "A lot of places have come and gone (that were gathering places for local politicians, judges, and lawyers), just about the only one left is Manory's."

The community memory represented by Manory's is what Lou and Jen would like to celebrate this spring, and they have a few ideas about just how they might do it.

When Manory's first opened in the spring of 1913, they were one of the first customers of the Freihofer Vienna Baking Co.'s first factory in the Capital District, located in Lansingburgh, which opened on March 12 the same year. The restaurant has maintained that connection with the bakery even though Freihofer's no longer owns the Lansingburgh bakery.

"Manory's (...) is still a Freihofer customer - they deliver to use four times a week," explained Lou. Now he is hoping the company - now part of Bimbo Bakeries USA, the American branch of Mexican-based Grupo Bimbo - can still give credence to the two businesses' century-old partnership.

"We were hoping that perhaps they could send a horse and buggy and could hand out cookies and we could hand out coffee."

Last week, in addition to a call from county legislator who said a resolution in recognition of the establishment's longevity was a possibility, Lou received a call from a Freihofer's representative who said the company is interested in the idea.

If all comes to fruition, the sound of horses' hoofs may again be heard on the streets of downtown Troy, and an establishment that was present when much of the traffic outside its windows was horse-drawn may again receive baked goods from a horse and buggy.